Rijksmuseum reborn: Rembrandt's 'Night Watch' explained - CNN.com Rijksmuseum reborn: Rembrandt's 'Night Watch' explained Bryony Jones, Nav Garcha and Ines Torre Updated 7:06 AM ET, Thu February 5, 2015 Chat with us in Facebook Messenger. Find out what's happening in the world as it unfolds. Image courtesy of Rijksmuseum Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum reopens after massive $489m, 10-year rebuilding program The 'altarpiece' of the cathedral-like Gallery of Honor is Rembrandt's 'The Night Watch' Curator Pieter Roelofs says the painting is 'the Dutch national treasure' Click on the picture above to reveal the artwork's secrets. (CNN) Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum , one of the world's best-known galleries, reopens April 13 after a massive 10-year rebuild.

At the heart of the "new" museum is its most treasured painting, " The Night Watch ," a group portrait of one of Amsterdam's local militias, painted by Rembrandt van Rijn in 1642, at the height of the Dutch Golden Age. Read more: Rijksmuseum reopens after 10-year refurb Architect Pierre Cuypers designed the building around the massive masterpiece -- it measures 11 feet by 14 feet -- in 1885, and it is the only work to be returned to its original location in the radically revamped gallery. "Everything has changed, the only thing that hasn't is 'The Night Watch'," explains Wim Pijbes, the museum's director.

"It is the altarpiece of the Rijksmuseum, the whole place is arranged around this beautiful masterpiece." Read More Photos: Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years Photos: Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years – Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum, home to one of the world's greatest art collections, reopens to the public on Saturday April 13, after a mammoth 10-year US$489m renovation project. The exhibits have been reorganized into chronological order, with paintings, furniture and other objects displayed side-by-side to tell the history of the Netherlands. Hide Caption 1 of 16 Photos: Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years – The museum's original entrance hall, designed by architect Pierre Cuypers in 1885, and decorated with opulent wall paintings by Georg Sturm, has been returned to its former glory.

Hide Caption 2 of 16 Photos: Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years – The jewel-like stained glass windows in the entrance hall celebrate great architects, sculptors and painters, including Rembrandt van Rijn, and add to the cathedral-like atmosphere. Hide Caption 3 of 16 Photos: Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years – Contrasting ancient and modern, Spanish architects Cruz y Ortiz reinstated the building's original courtyards, which had been crammed with makeshift galleries for decades, linking them into one huge, bright and airy atrium. Hide Caption 4 of 16 Photos: Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years – The museum's collection of one million objects, some 8,000 of which are on display at any one time, span 800 years, from the Middle Ages to modern artist Piet Mondrian, and including this 1887 self portrait by Vincent Van Gogh.

Hide Caption 5 of 16 Photos: Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years – This painted terracotta statue of the "Mater Dolorosa," or "Our Lady of Sorrows" (c.1500-1510) is among the new acquisitions collected while the museum was closed to visitors. Hide Caption 6 of 16 Photos: Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years – At the heart of the gallery is its most-prized possession, "The Night Watch," by Rembrandt van Rijn (1642). The museum was designed around the painting, and it is the only artwork to be returned to its original place. Hide Caption 7 of 16 Photos: Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years – Turner Prize-winning British artist Richard Wright was commissioned to create a new installation, featuring more than 47,000 black stars, in dizzying patterns on the ceilings of the rooms to the sides of "The Night Watch".

Hide Caption 8 of 16 Photos: Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years – The Rijksmuseum is also home to several works by Johannes Vermeer -- "The Milkmaid" (1658-1660) is among those taking pride of place in the church-like Gallery of Honor. Hide Caption 9 of 16 Photos: Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years – Pictures are hung on walls painted in shades of gray, the colors chosen so that they does not distract from the artworks themselves. Hide Caption 10 of 16 Photos: Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years – In the 20th Century galleries, Fritz Koolhoven's FK 23 Bantam plane sits alongside a painting by Piet Mondrian, both items considered the height of modernity in their era.

Hide Caption 11 of 16 Photos: Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years – Disturbing periods of Dutch history are also acknowledged. These facial casts of Nias Islanders, made by anthropologist J.P. Kleiweg de Zwaan as part of his studies of racial "types" are displayed alongside a concentration camp uniform and a chess set given as a gift by Nazi Heinrich Himmler. Hide Caption 12 of 16 Photos: Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years – The museum's special collections, of weapons, fashion and jewellery, Dutch porcelain and musical instruments are displayed in the crypt-like basement. Here, a fleet of model ships sail across the room. Hide Caption 13 of 16 Photos: Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years – An entirely new annexe, the Asian Pavillion, has been built to house the museum's collection of art from China, Japan, Indonesia, India, Vietnam and Thailand.

Hide Caption 14 of 16 Photos: Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years Rijksmuseum reopens after 10 years – Another highlight of the "new" museum is its ornate four-story library, complete with vertiginous spiral staircase, which has never been open to the public before. Hide Caption The Night Watch by Rembrandt – Facts & History about the Painting The Three Trees Rembrandt painted The Night Watch in 1642 and is known as one of his most famous paintings. It is also been recognized as one of Rembrandt’s most debatable and controversial works of art. The Night Watch is the largest painting (at 142.9 in x 172.0 in) in Rembrandt’s line of work. The light and dark contrast in the military portrait is very well recognized. The captain of the civic militia guards and 17 of its members are thought to have commissioned the painting and paid Rembrandt 1,600 guilders to paint The Night Watch. This was considered a great deal of money in that era. There are thirty-four figures that appear in The Night Watch.

The painting is an oil painting on a canvas that depicts militiamen lead by Willem van Ruytenburch and Frans Banning Cocq, located in the front area of the painting. At the time of the painting of The Night Watch, it was very common for militia units to commission painters for their portraits. At this time in history the 30 Years’ War from 1618-1648 was halfway through, and it was a time when the Netherlands sought independence from Spain. In the painting, the mayor of Amsterdam and Captain Franz Banning Cocq are seen standing next to the lieutenant Willem van Ruytenburch. The light of the painting shines mostly on Cocq and Ruytenburch with them being the main focal point and the rest of the men surrounding them. Also in the light, a little girl clothed in yellow is seen behind Cocq. The eye is naturally led to these three main characters shining out of the crowd. This is because of the sunlight and shadow features that Rembrandt uses in the most effective ways in the painting. Behind these three characters is the ensign whose name is Jan Vissher Cornelissen. He carries the company’s colors with him in the painting.

There were changes made to the first painting such as cutting it to fit into the town hall in Amsterdam in 1715. All four sides of the painting were cut before moving it to the town hall and later the painting was again moved to Trippenhuis or what was later called Rijksmuseum. In 1939 when World War II began, it was moved to Medemblik, and rolled into a cylinder form. The painting was brought back to Rijksmuseum when the war ended. Considering the very large size of the painting, and how many times it was moved, it remained in astonishing condition. The Night Watch is also known to have recovered from at least two vandalism attacks. One of the attacks occurred in 1975 when someone left zigzag marks by using a butter knife on the painting. Another horrible incident occurred in 1990 by a man spraying acid on this great work of art. The painting still shows some of the zigzag marks even though the painting has been fully restored. The Night Watch painting is today displayed in the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam in the Netherlands and is considered to be the most famous painting displayed there.

2 responses to “The Night Watch” Flashmob recreates Rembrandt painting The Night Watch - YouTube Flashmob recreates Rembrandt painting The Night Watch Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. The interactive transcript could not be loaded. Loading... Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. Published on Apr 5, 2013 A flashmob recreates Rembrandt's painting, The Night Watch, in a shopping centre in Breda to mark the painting's return to the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. The museum is due to reopen on 13 April following a 10-year renovation. The painting, completed in 1642, depicts Captain Frans Banning Cocq and his lieutenant, Willem van Ruytenburch, leading out their city guard, Schutterij. . Rembrandt Paintings: Night Watch Rembrandt Paintings: Night Watch Tweet Night Watch is not only one of most acclaimed Rembrandt paintings but also one of the most famous artworks in Europe.

Officially given the unwieldy title Militia Company of Captain Frans Banninck Cocq, Night Watch is one of 125 surviving civic guard portraits, the most prestigious commission a portraitist could obtain. When Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-69) painted it in 1642, he had been in Amsterdam for over a decade and was considered the most famous painter of the Dutch Golden Age . Rembrandt paintings were in great demand during this era, unlike those of countryman Johann Vermeer, now viewed as the other most prominent painter of the Golden Age. Rembrandt van Rijn. Militia Company of Captain Frans Banninck Cocq (Night Watch), 1642. Oil on canvas, approx. 12' by 14'. Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Militia Company was originally believed to portray a nocturnal guard, earning it the enduring 19th century nickname, Night Watch. After the recent cleaning of Night Watch and Phillips' installation of LED lighting to illuminate it, one can handily see the guardsman standing in dim but daylight spaces. The nickname isn't going anywhere, though.

Night Watch portrays the company of kloveniers commanded by Captain Frans Banninck Cocq, who is in the black attire in the left foreground, and Lieutenant Willem van Ruytenburch, who is distinguished by his partisan, a weapon carried only by officers. The company derived its name from the "klover", a firearm superseded by a musket known as an arquebus. Rembrandt provides other clues that these are kloveniers - under the belt of the brightly illuminated young girl, for instance, is a dead bird whose claws are an attribute of the company. Night Watch was a revolutionary civic guard portrait. Unlike like the static lineup typical of preceding guard portraits, these guards are in motion. As in other Rembrandt paintings, he uses dramatic light-dark contrasts; here they heighten this sense of activity and accentuate the portraits. Cocq, whose lips are parted, issues an order and the company springs into action: the drummer (right foreground) starts drumming; the ensign raises the standard; and the guards hoist their weapons.

The musket is dominant - three guards model how it works; the guard in red (left foreground) is re-loading his; the guard behind the Lieutenant is blowing away residual powder after firing; and the guard behind the Captain is shooting his. Attributed to Gerrit Lundens. Night Watch, c. 1655. Oil on panel, 2' 2" by 2' 10". National Gallery, London. Records indicate the guards were pleased with Night Watch, and that the 16 guards each paid Rembrandt about 100 guilders, depending upon their prominence in the portrait. A decade after its completion, Rembrandt added a shield (center top) with the names of all 18 people (16 guards, the young girl, and the drummer, hired for the occasion) whose portraits comprise Night Watch. Night Watch was commissioned and designed for the Great Hall of the Kloveniersdoelen, where it hung until it was moved in 1715 to the Amsterdam town hall. After discovering it was too large for its new space, Night Watch was trimmed on all sides to fit into these tighter quarters.

Luckily, Captain Cocq had been so enthralled with his portrait that he commissioned a copy of Night Watch for his personal use. Zoom around this Night Watch copy to gain a sense of what the original Night Watch looked like. I learned of new speculation about Rembrandt's Night Watch. Some art historians speculate that Rembrandt included his own self-portrait - he may be the one eyed man sporting a beret and peeking over the right shoulder of the man n the top hat. With all the self-portraits in Rembrandt paintings, he is one of the most recognized figures of the 17th century. Are you persuaded that this is, or might be, him? Rembrandt van Rijn. Self Portrait as the Apostle Paul. Oil on canvas, 1661. Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Survey of the History of Art Curious to learn about famous paintings? You can either peruse all the leading art history textbooks to see what art historians choose ... OR... you can let Masterpiece Cards' art history flashcards do it for you!

Each of the 250 famous paintings in the set is reproduced on a 4" by 6" Card; on its reverse are facts and an art historian's commentary about the work. Explore sample Masterpiece Cards , a set of art history flashcards to teach and learn the history of painting! The Night Watch, Rembrandt: Analysis, Meaning The Painting So famous a picture, which in the past has been almost as much abused as praised, has not surpringly triggered an immense amount of analysis, only some of which can be discussed here. Known for its colossal size (roughly 12 feet x 14 feet), the canvas - when compared to earlier copies, like the version (c.1650) by Gerrit Lundens, now in the National Gallery, London - has obviously been trimmed, probably when it was moved to the Town Hall in 1715. About 60 cm, incorporating two background figures and a baby, have been removed from the left side, and lesser amounts from the other three sides. This unbalances the composition (the arch in the background was originally nearer the center) and compresses the figures into too confined a space.

In all twenty-six figures are now fully or partially visible, including three children (or dwarves) and small parts of five more figures can just be discerned in the background. To the right of the arch there is a shield, added later, bearing the name of eighteen of the persons portrayed. According to two of them, who gave evidence on Rembrandt's behalf during the investigation into his financial affairs in 1658, he was paid a total of 1,600 guilders - the sitters contributed an average of 100 guilders each, the sum varying with their prominence in the picture. Inaccurate Title At least since the cleaning of the picture in 1946-7, it has been evident that the scene takes place in daylight, with the sun streaming down from the top left. A further cleaning completed in 1980 showed that the tones are predominantly cool. The traditional title The Nightwatch which dates from the late 18th century, is therefore incorrect but it would be absurdly pedantic to suggest changing it now.

Key Figures Demonstrating his mastery of sunlight and shade, Rembrandt leads the eye to the three key characters among the ensemble - the two officers in the centre (from whom the painting gets its original title), and the small girl in the centre left background. Behind them the company's colours are carried by the ensign, Jan Visscher Cornelissen. The senior and central officer, Captain Franz Banning Cocq (1605-55), is dressed in black with a red sash. His Lieutenant, Willem Van Ruytenburch, is in pale yellow with a white sash, and carries a ceremonial lance. The girl to the left of and behind Banning Cocq acts as a sort of pictorial mascot. She carries the guild's costly drinking horn and, at her girdle, a dead fowl, the prominent claw of which is an emblem of the Musketeers. This bird may also be intended as a pun on the Captain's name. Other Subjects The man in front of the girl is wearing a helmet with an oak leaf, another traditional emblem of the Musketeers or Arquebusiers. Several figures are shown handling their weapons.

One pours powder down the barrel of his musket; another, to the right and behind the Lieutenant, is attending to the priming pan; a third - the small figure in a helmet directly behind Banning Cocq - appears to be firing his musket into the air. Some characters are represented much more distinctly than others, while the eighteen who subscribed are supplemented by almost as many subordinate figures, included by Rembrandt for pictorial effect. Adding these extra subjects also allowed him to make use of his broad repertoire of figure drawing and other studies. A Militia Company Portrait Local militia companies were raised during the 16th century during the Dutch war of Independence, to protect the cities from invasion by the Spanish army active in Flanders. But by Rembrandt's time they were no longer employed in a military capacity except on the borders, and were kept in being purely for symbolic reasons. It seems that the company in Rembrandt's painting is marching out to take part in a shooting match. Various other interpretations of the picture involving illusions to past and contemporary historical events have also been put forward, but they are all now discredited.

The meaning of the painting is likely to be purely that of a role portrait, the theme of which is the 'citizen in arms'. Militia Portrait Transformed Visually, The Nightwatch tranforms the prosaic genre of militia portraiture into an action picture - a work of great movement, dazzling inventiveness and splendour or, as some 19th century critics maintained, a widely over-inflated account of a very ordinary event, or a cross between a portrait and genre painting . It marked at once a revolution in, and the swan song of, the militia company portrait, for shortly afterwards, the demand for these portraits ceased and artists turned to the quieter and more humdrum scenes of the guild portrait and the portrait of the board of hospital governors. (Compare his novel treatment of militia portraits with his treatment of 'dissection portraits' as in his famous Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp (1632, Mauritshuis). Moreover, Rembrandt himself was never to paint such a flamboyant or such a fully Baroque picture again.

However, one thing is certain; the painting was a major success at the time, and more than justified his status as one of the best portrait artists in Europe. The story that it was disliked by those portrayed and that it was the cause in the decline in Rembrandt's contemporary reputation (which did occur to some extent in the late 1640s and 1650s) is a romantic fiction invented in the 19th century. Indeed it is a wonder how this fiction arose, since there is abundant evidence to show that for more than a hundred years after it was painted, The Nightwatch was widely regarded as Rembrandt's most celebrated work. Rembrandt One of the greatest Dutch Realist artists , Rembrandt is famous for his penetrating and powerful portraiture, of both individuals and groups. This, together with his supreme painting skills, his atmospheric handling of light, and his mastery of chiaroscuro, make him one of the best artists of all time .

The Night Watch - Become Art Expert Become Art Expert April 21, 2016 This large oil on canvas painting (14ft x 12ft 6″) Rembrandt’s most famous painting, is displayed in a central position at the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. It is now known as the Night Watch, 1642, a title awarded to it 150 years after it had been painted. This was because with dirt attaching to the varnish it had darkened considerably and appeared, wrongly to have taken place at night. When commissioned, by Captain Banning Cocq and 17 contributing members of his Company, it was known as “Officers and Men of the Company of Captain Frans Banning Cocq and Lieutenant Wilhelm van Ruytenburgh preparing to march out”. The 18 names are on the shield in the centre, added in 1715 after the painting had been moved to the Amsterdam Town Hall. This is a group portrait of civilians in uniform known as civic guardsmen, the Kloveniersdoelen musketeers of Amsterdam.

Their emblem was a golden claw on a blue field Each Company had its own Guildhall decorated with group portraits like this one, of their most significant members, and their tasks were to defend cities, maintain order, put out fires, parade for visiting royalty and festive occasions. They would also practice on shooting ranges with a long bow, a crossbow or a musket. They were proud respected members of the community who epitomised civic duty. At this time there was animosity from Spain which was occupying part of the Netherlands and trying to impose Catholicism onto a Protestant people so this painting could well represent a response to a threat at the City’s walls. This is symbolised by the large imaginary archway in the painting. There is a feeling of action in this painting, Captain Cocq armed with a rapier, his left hand jutting out towards the viewer, striding forward as he gives orders to his Lieutenant (van Ruytenburgh) in yellow, carrying a ceremonial spear. The girl to the captain’s left could be a mascot but is more likely to be symbolic. The claws of the chicken hanging from her waistband represent the Company’s emblem and the dead chicken a defeated opponent. She holds the Kloveniers’ ceremonial drinking horn.

The raising of the standard on the left, the young boy rushing off to collect gunpowder for the muskets and near him a drummer beating and a dog barking show movement. Three of the five musketeers are showing basic actions which could have been copied from current weapons manuals. Apart from the 18 contributing members who are all engaged in various activities, there are a further 16 more shadowy figures who add bulk and vitality to the scene. Wearing a beret and looking up behind the figure standing next to the standard bearer is thought to be Rembrandt himself. The way this painting is presented, and illuminated by LED lights, and the fact that it is so large means that the figures are practically human size so they seem to be spookily lifelike to viewers. Rembrandt was paid 1600 guilders for this painting and coincidentally around this time bought a very expensive house. Famous Night Watch Painting by Rembrandt Political Art The Night Watch painting by Rembrandt is in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam . As the photo shows, it's a huge painting: 363x437cm (143x172").

Rembrandt finished it in 1642. It's true title is The Company of Frans Banning Cocq and Willem van Ruytenburch, but it's better known simply as the Night Watch. (A company being a militia guard.) The composition of the painting was very different for the period. Instead of showing the figures in a neat orderly fashion, where everyone was given the same prominence and space on the canvas, Rembrandt has painted them as a busy group in action. Around 1715 a shield was painted onto the Night Watch containing the names of 18 people, but only had ever been identified. (So remember if you paint a group portrait: draw a diagram on the back to go with the names of everyone so future generations will know!) In March 2009 Dutch historian Bas Dudok van Heel finally unraveled the mystery of who's who in the painting. His research even found items of clothing and accessories depicted in the Night Watch mentioned in inventories of family estates, which he then collated with the age of the various militiamen in 1642, the year the painting was completed.

Dudok van Heel also discovered that in the hall where Rembrandt's Night Watch was first hung, there were six group portraits of militia originally displayed in a continuous series, not six separate paintings as has long been thought. Rather the six group portraits by Rembrandt, Pickenoy, Bakker, Van der Helst, Van Sandrart, and Flinck formed an unbroken frieze each matching the other and fixed in the wooden paneling of the room. Or that was the intention... Rembrandt’s Night Watch doesn't fit with the other paintings in either composition or color. It seems Rembrandt did not adhere to the terms of his commission. But then, if he had, we'd never have had this strikingly different 17th century group portrait. Find Out More: The Night Watch by Rembrandt van Rijn click here for a larger image from: "The Legend and the Man," in The World of Rembrandt: 1606-1669 (Time-Life Library of Art), Walter Wallace, New York, 1968, pp.

107-111 Since this celebrated work will always be known by an incorrect title, and since those who have not seen it continue to believe, quite logically, that it is a nocturne Company of Captain Frans Banning Cocq and Lieutenant Willem van Ruytenhurch, and not until late in the 18th Century did it acquire the name by which it is now known. Unfortunately, both "Night" and " "Watch" are wrong. The civic guards who are depicted had, by the time Rembrandt painted them, become quite pacific; it was no longer necessary for them to defend the ramparts of Amsterdam or to go out on watches by night or by day. Their meetings had been diverted chiefly to social or sporting purposes; if they may be said to have any particular destination in the painting, it is perhaps to march into the fields for a shooting contest or to take part in a parade. "Night" is even less apt than "Watch." When the critics and the public attached that word to the painting, the canvas had become so darkened by dirt and layers of varnish that it was difficult to tell whether the illumination Rembrandt had provided in it came from the sun or moon.

Not until after the end of World War II was the painting fully restored so that the viewer could get an idea of the brightness it had when it left Rembrandt's hand more than 300 years before. (Upon seeing the refreshed work, journalists promptly re-christened it the "Day Watch.") Rembrandt, possibly more than any other artist, has suffered from the ministrations of picture restorers. The infamous "Rembrandt brown" is their work, not his, and so too is the widespread impression that he was a monotonous colorist who invariably worked with a low-keyed palette. It is true that the forceful use of chiaroscuro in his paintings, with its emphasis on the mysterious, evocative qualities of shadow, has always disturbed certain critics, and so occasionally has his subject matter.

John Ruskin, the 19th Century English art critic and essayist, who had a superb knack for being wrong in just the right words, remarked that "it is the aim of the best painters to paint the noblest things they can see by sunlight, but of Rembrandt to paint the foulest things he could see by rushlight." However even Ruskin, if he had seen a cleaned Rembrandt panel or canvas, might have directed some of his vitriol at the men who applied layer upon layer of toned varnish on the artist's pictures. In the past generation not only the Night Watch but many other Rembrandt paintings have been stripped of their dirty and discolored overlays-with a consequential appraisal by critics of his genius as a colorist. There is an understandable, if not a good, reason why Rembrandt's works were so slathered with varnish. As he matured he became increasingly free in his technique, using bold strokes, passages of broken color, heavy impasto applied with the palette knife, and areas scumbled with his fingers.

This highly personal stlye proved a mystery to most critics of the late 17th and 18th Centuries, who attributed it to laxness or perversity. Rembrandt himself seems to have suggested indirectly that his work was to be observed at a slight distance, so that the intervening space would make his strokes and colors fuse. According to Houbraken, "visitors to his studio who wanted to look at his works closely were frightened away by his saying, 'The smell of the colors will bother you.'" The probability is that Rembrandt was not at all concerned about the smell of fresh paint, which is pleasant to many people, but that he did not care to answer dim questions from his guests. To their credit, it should be recorded 'that there were a few early critics who admired Rembrandt's rough strokes and said so. In 1700 an English writer on art, John Eisum, published a poem dedicated to "An Old Man's Head, by Rembrant": What a coarse rugged Way of Painting's here, Stroaks upon Stroaks, Dabbs upon Dabbs appear.

The Work you' d think was huddled up in haste, But mark how truly ev'ry Colour's placed, With such Oeconomy in such a sort, That they each mutualiy support. Rembrant! thy Pencil plays a subtil Part This Roughness is contriv'd to hide thy Art. One or two theorists of Rembrandt's era agreed that his paintings, in their "coarse rugged Way," would appear more coherent if one stepped back from them, but they noted that a similar coherence could be obtained with varnish. As a result, for more than a century after Rembrandt's death liberal applications of varnish, frequently tinted, were applied to many of his paintings by dealers-and what is even more unfortunate-by collectors. Theoretically, the Night Watch should not have been a candidate for such treatment. Although it contains some wonderfully rich and complex areas, Rembrandt did not paint it in the freest style he would ultimately achieve. Nonetheless, this masterpiece received its full gallonage of Golden Glow and Toner.

In fairness to the varnishers, it must be said that their intention was to protect the paintings from dirt as well as to "improve" certain of them by making the strokes and colors blend. Inadvertently, the varnishers also rendered a great service to the world of art. In 1911, when the Night Watch was still covered with a thick layer of hardened varnish, an unemployed ship's cook went at it with a knife. He seems to have had no reason for this act of apparent madness beyond the fact that the painting was famous and he was not. But its surface coating proved as resistant as glass, and the attacker was unable to cut through it. The Night Watch was commissioned by Captain Barining Cocq and 17 members of his civic guards; that this was the total of Rembrandt's clients for the work is assumed from the fact that 18 names, added by an unknown hand after the painting was completed, appear on a shield on the background wall.

Doubtless the guardsmen expected a group portrait in which each member would be clearly recognizable, although perhaps not of equal prominence; it was often the practice for less affluent or junior members of a group to be represented only by heads or partial figures, for which they paid less than did those who were portrayed full length. The guardsmen, most of whom must have been familiar with Rembrandt's Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Tulp of a decade earlier, may also have foreseen that the artist would not produce a standard, static painting. But none of them could have been prepared for the thunderous masterwork with which they were confronted. The Night Watch is colossal. In its original dimensions it measured approximately 13 by 16 feet and contained not only the 18 guardsmen but 16 other figures added by Rembrandt to give still more animation to an already tumultuous scene. It was by far the most revolutionary painting Rembrandt had yet made, transforming the traditional Dutch group portrait into a dazzling blaze of light, color and motion, and subordinating the requirements of orthodox portraiture to a far larger, more complex but still unified whole.

In Rembrandt's hands what was, after all, a commonplace affair became filled with Baroque pictorial splendor, loud with the sound of drum and musket, the thud of ramrods, the barking of a dog, the cries of children. In the forefront Captain Banning Cocq - in black, with a red sash - and his lieutenant in yellow lead the forward drive of the still unformed ranks. The sense of movement is reinforced by converging diagonal lines: on the right, the foreshortened spontoon in the lieutenant's hand, the musket above it and the lance still higher; and on the left, the captain's staff, its line repeated above by another musket and the banner. The effect on the viewer is direct; he feels that he had best get out of the way. The powerful contrast of light and shade heightens the sense of movement, but it is well to regard Rembrandt's use of light in this painting, as in many others, from an esthetic rather than from a strictly logical view- point.

He was, in the phrase of one critic, "his own sun-god." The shadow cast by the captain's hand on the lieutenant's coat might suggest that the sun is at an apparent angle of about 45 degrees to the left, but the shadow of the captain's extended leg indicates quite a different angle. The picture was of course composed and painted indoors, not while the officers posed for him out of doors, and although his lighting in any particular detail may be true to nature, that is not the case overall. He regulated and manipulated light-opening or closing the shutters in his studio-for his own purpose, which was to create an atmosphere both dreamlike and dramatic. The Night Watch lies at the center of the most persistent and annoying of all Rembrandt myths. As recently as the tourist season of 1967, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines featured the painting by their illustrious countryman in an advertisement inviting travelers to visit Holland.

"See Night Watch," said the advertisement, "Rembrandt's spectacular 'failure' (that caused him to be) hooted ...down the road to bankruptcy." The myth has been attacked by various critics, and a few years ago it was utterly demolished by Professor Seymour Slive of Harvard in Rembrandt and His Critics. But since the tale has a phoenix-like capacity for self-resurrection, a few of Professor Slive's observations will bear repeating here. The painting was not poorly received; no critic during Rembrandt's lifetime wrote a word in dispraise of it. Captain Banning Cocq himself had a watercolor made of it for his personal album, and a contemporary oil copy of it by Gerrit Lundens, now owned by the National Gallery in London, offers further proof of the picture' s popularity. The Night Watch was never hidden in some obscure location; it was first hung in the Kloveniersdoelen, the headquarters of the civic guardsmen, and in 1715 it was moved to the Amsterdam town hall, as prominent a place as could have been found for it.

(Probably on the occasion of its transferal, but no doubt for reasons of space, the painting was cut down on all four sides. The greatest loss was on the left, where a strip about two feet wide, containing three figures, was removed. Nor did painting this supposed "failure" result in any abrupt withdrawal of patronage; Rembrandt received about 1,600 guilders for the Night Watch, and four years later the Prince of Orange gave him 2,400 for two smaller works. The fable of the Night Watch may owe its stubborn survival to the fact that it is a simple and convenient means of disposing of a complex matter. In 1642 Rembrandt was at the height of his popularity, and thereafter he slowly fell out of public favor, though never to the extent that romantic biographers suggest. What were the reasons for his "decline"? One of them, certainly, was a change in Dutch tastes in art. During the 1640s wealthy citizens, perhaps growing a trifle soft in their security, developed a fondness for showiness and elegance.

They began to prefer the bright colors and graceful manner that had been initiated by such painters as the fashionable Flemish portraitist Anthony van Dyck- who, however fine an artist, lacked Rembrandt' s depth. Rembrandt's use of chiaroscuro dissatisfied them too, and they turned away from an artist who seemed "dark" and-what was perhaps worse-demanded that they devote some thought to what they were looking at. paintings 10 unmissable Rijksmuseum highlights | I amsterdam 10 highlights of the Rijksmuseum 10 unmissable Rijksmuseum highlights Delve into Amsterdam’s grandest museum as Rijksmuseum insider Claire de Wolf shares her favourite works, lesser-known gems and hidden secrets. The Rijksmuseum is one of the world’s most famous museums, housing more than 8,000 works of art inside one of the Netherlands’ grandest buildings. If you’re planning to visit the museum soon, read our insider's picks of unmissable artworks and interesting features. 1.

The passageway "After working at the Rijksmuseum for three years, since the official opening in 2013, it’s a piece of cake choosing which art pieces are unmissable for the visitors. When I arrived at the museum for the first time, the passageway caught my eye. The transparency, atmosphere, kind hosts and street musicians’ sounds make a great entrance. When entering the museum, most of the visitors rush to the Gallery of Honour to find the famous Night Watch (Rembrandt Harmensz van Rijn, 1642) and the Milkmaid (Johannes Vermeer, 1660)." The Rijksmuseum underpass attracts regular buskers due to its magical acoustics 2. The Night Watch, Rembrandt Harmensz van Rijn, 1642 "The Night Watch is Rembrandt’s most famous (and largest) canvas, made for the Arquebusiers guild hall. He was the first to paint lively figures in a group portrait. For instance: the guardsmen are getting into formation and the captain – in the front – is telling his lieutenant to start the company marching.

The young girl in the foreground was the company’s mascot. Rumour has it that Rembrandt painted her to look like his wife, who passed away during the making of The Night Watch. The painting survived its cutting to fit into the Town Hall in 1715. And during World War II, it was rolled into a cylinder form and moved out of Amsterdam. In the last 40 years there have been two attacks of vandalism on the painting: the first one happened with a butter knife in 1975, the second with sprayed acid in 1990." 3. The Milkmaid, Johannes Vermeer, 1660 "Vermeer’s famous work depicts a maidservant pouring milk, totally absorbed in her labour. The whole painting is still, except for the stream of milk; Vermeer knew how to use colors to make fluids appear lively. Every time I look at the painting, it makes me believe that the milk is actually real, instead of paint." 4. Self-portrait, Vincent Van Gogh, 1887 "Personally, I am an enormous fan of impressionism - and so also of Vincent’s paintings.

But what really left an impression on me was his tragic story. After moving to France and moving in with his friend Gauguin in 1888, he experienced great creativity – but also tensions and dementia. When Gauguin started to think about leaving, Vincent threatened him with a knife – but ended up cutting his own (left) ear. He allegedly brought the ear to a nearby brothel. After the incident, he checked himself into a mental institution – where his further alternation of madness and creativity took place. He moved to Auvers-sur-Oise (near Paris) in 1890, where the despair and loneliness increased and he eventually committed suicide." 5. Cuypers looks around the corner "The Rijksmuseum reopened on the 13th of April 2013, after a decade-long renovation. However the first official opening took place in 1885. The building’s architect was Pierre Cuypers, who received a lot of criticism for his design. The general opinion was that it was 'too much Renaissance and Gothic, not enough Dutch'. But after 130 years, the building is still standing strong.

Just like Cuypers, who included himself in the design as a stone sculpture, peeking around the corner. He has been watching over the museum all this time." Can you spot Rijksmuseum architect Pierre Cupers peeking around the corner? 6. Banquet at the Crossbowmen’s Guild in Celebration of the Treaty of Münster, Bartholomeus van der Helst, 1648 "Bartholomeus van der Helst painted his most famous work in 1648, depicting the signing of the Treaty of Münster (which marked an end to the war with Spain). The banquet takes place at the Amsterdam crossbowmen’s guild. It is a symbolic meal of peace, where Amsterdam's reconciliation politics are highlighted. The captains shake hands, the drinking horn (peace chalice) is passed, and the poem on the drum tells about the militia’s joy that their weapons can be laid to rest. This is a painting that dares you to stare at it for a long time: you keep discovering more details. For example, you can see a perfect reflection of the drinking men in one man’s armour." 7.

The Singel Bridge at the Paleisstraat in Amsterdam, George Hendrik Breitner, 1896 "The way in which this woman walks in your direction and the way the painting is ‘cropped’, is very photographic. Breitner often took photos to prepare future paintings – a technological development that 19th century painters could benefit from. Along with the innovative painting’s perspective, I find its changed appearance interesting too. He initially painted the woman as a maid, but after negative reviews from his representing gallery, who said 'it would be better if he made her into an elegant lady', he changed the painting’s components." The lady in the foreground was originally painted as a maid 8. The Battle of Waterloo, Jan Willem Pieneman, 1824 "This painting draws my attention. Not only because of its colossal size (the Night Watch can fit inside it at least three times), but the unrealistic – yet very realistic looking – portrayal of the scene. The Battle of Waterloo was an impetuous fight, but Pieneman apparently chose to give the soldiers a rather relaxed look. The painting was supposed to be displayed in the palace of Brussels, which might be an explanation." 9.

Reception room from Haarlem, Abraham van der Hart, ca. 1793-1795 "Abraham made the room entirely classicistic: all the room’s components are coordinated and match each other, despite their origins – which was typical for the 18th century. The mantelpiece is from Italy, the carpet from Belgium, the furniture from Amsterdam, the silk stringing from France and the chandeliers from England. The room was designed for merchant and art collector Willem Philips Kops, and was used for big evening receptions. When looking into the reception room – and listening to the classical music – you can imagine yourself in the 18th century, and that is what makes it special for me." The room was moved from Haarlem to Amsterdam in its original state 10. The Cuypers Library "The Cuypers Library is the biggest and oldest historical art library in the Netherlands. After the ten year-renovation, it has been brought back to its original state: just as Cuypers had in mind. Every single visitor that enters the library has a 'jaw-drop moment', including myself, because of its impressive – but calm – look.

Visitors, students and art historians are welcome to study here, and iPads are available to use." See what's on at the Rijksmuseum and find details about entry prices, opening times and visitor information.

Question: Who, in 1642, painted 'The Night Watch', now to be found in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam?
Answer: REMBRANDT